Origin of a Legend
by Vecturist
Summary: Set after the events of Epiphany and Critical Mass. A continuation of the ‘Inheritance’ series. Colonel Sheppard and Dr. Randall have to deal with a few implications of the ATA gene.
1. Chapter 1

The Origin of a Legend

Chapter 1

Summary: Set after the events of Epiphany and Critical Mass. A continuation of the 'Inheritance' series. Colonel Sheppard and Dr. Randall have to deal with a few implications of the ATA gene.

By all appearances, he was just Colonel John Sheppard, out for an early morning jog. If someone had been paying more attention to his route, they would have noticed he was headed into one of the deeper portions of the city, where sensors worked intermittently. A good place to hide, especially when one heard that SGA-4 had just found a new cache of Ancient devices, and Dr. McKay was looking forward to discovering what they did. Sheppard sighed and entered a small room he'd found a year before. He paused for a moment, seeing the petite figure sitting cross-legged on one of the chairs. "Dr. Randall. Kyte. I assume you heard about SGA-4's discovery?" He grinned sheepishly as he saw her start and look up from her reading. Obviously she hadn't heard him enter.

"No, it's my day off and I thought I'd make it a real day off," she stretched and indicated her attire: jeans with a knee ripped out, t-shirt topped with a faded corduroy shirt, sleeves rolled to the elbow. "New Ancient devices? I guess you know who will be looking for a few volunteers. I assume you're hiding out?"

"Hopefully." He sank gratefully into another chair. The artificial light well made this room pleasant, despite its location deep in the city. "Any chance you think he'll pester Carson for awhile?

"Probably not, although I haven't talked to Carson much lately. He's got some new project he's devoting increasing hours to. Face it Colonel, you're still at the top of the list for activating things." Kyte shrugged.

"Yeah, and you're a close second." Her modified gene wasn't quite as strong as his, but she possessed a level of concentration that compensated for the shortcoming. "Plus you can absorb data, which I can't quite like you. I think they found a couple data storage devices, Rodney will probably want you to take a look at." He saw her darken at his comment. "Nothing like the repository we found on the planet. No fear of overload." Kyte might have had the ATA gene, but she also had an additional sequence with it, that allowed her to access and recall limited amounts of data. The current theory among some of the residents was that the Ancients realized that the humans on earth were just different enough from them that they might not have been able to access all the technology, hence someone engineered her family line to allow that capability. "I'm sorry that your trip to Earth got canceled," he started again.

"I think I can understand. I shouldn't have gotten my hopes up. It's more than a little scary knowing the Trust was infiltrated by the goa'uld and Caldwell was one of them. I don't want to think about what they could have access to, what they could have found out. The splinter group of the Trust I dealt with, were pretty well connected, with very deep pockets. Their lab was better equipped than half a dozen universities. What they want they get or buy or steal." Kyte shuddered as finished. Her ATA gene had initially attracted their attention and led to her getting kidnapped and finding herself in Pegasus on a hunt for Ancient technology. When she'd arrived in Atlantis, by pure luck, she'd initially left out a few things, like how they'd tried to find out her capabilities. Stargate Command decided her presence needed to remain classified. Not what you want to hear when you come from a close-knit family, and can't let people know what happened to you, or even that you're alive.

"So planning to hide out the whole day?" he asked moving to a safer topic, deciding not to ask if recent events had rekindled nightmares. The answer was probably yes, but she'd never admit to it. He could understand people keeping things to themselves, since he himself was a master of the craft.

"Yep. Brought coffee and a couple sandwiches," she toed a small pack at her feet.

"Turkey? I missed those at the cloister. Don't get wrong the food was good, but the things you miss…" he trailed off as he saw the scientist nodding. "Actually haven't seen you that much, since I returned. I guess there's been a lot of excitement." He shook his head as he realized how crazy that sounded. What had been six months was only a few hours on Atlantis.

She was silent for a few minutes. "What they said to you, while you were in the portal about talents, do you think mankind in general will get there or just a select few? I mean is this our next evolution?" she started to explain, as she noticed shadows in the hall.

"Colonel Sheppard. Dr. Randall. Nice to find both of you." Both people in question grimaced at a very excited and relived looking Rodney McKay. "I've got a few new discoveries to test, and having both of you will make things go faster, and increase some probabilities of something working. Now if we can just head back to my lab, he turned and started back down the hallway, then jogged back when he realized he wasn't being followed.

"It's supposed to be my day off. In my book, that means I am nowhere near a lab for twenty-four hours. I get to do fun things, like think about doing my nails and if I should cut my hair," Kyte tried to explain. The physicist only scowled at her. "Okay, okay, I'm coming," she muttered shooting the colonel a 'misery loves company' look.

"You might show some excitement, Sheppard. We might just find a new weapon against the Wraith. Plus, we think we discovered a small stockpile of drones," Rodney scolded, a teacher lecturing some reluctant pupils.

"Up for some target practice? You haven't gotten much time to directly interface with the city, Kyte," interrupted Sheppard, brightening slightly.

"Sure," she replied quietly, successfully hiding a small wince. Connecting with Atlantis herself was a new addition to her growing list of concerns. She lacked the initial ease Sheppard had with the city, and it was getting more and more difficult to maintain the link. It all had to o with what happened P3X-064. They'd found a database on the planet, and unfortunately, in order to fully access it , one had to be an Ancient. Kyte's sequence had provided a bridge of sorts and allowed for a partial 'rewiring' to save her and Dr. McKay's life, but it hadn't been without consequences for her. She supposed it was analogous to fiddling with a pair of rabbit ears – better reception on one channel does not necessarily equal the same for another. The 'rewiring' left her with a diminishing ability to connect with the city. Kyte hadn't mentioned it to anyone, although Atlantis herself was aware of the problem, and even knew how to correct it. Kyte just didn't like the solution – allow the city to resurrect one of the old labs and use the equipment to rewrite part of her DNA related to the ATA gene and her additional sequence, changing some of her neural pathways as a result. She supposed it was only a matter of time before Atlantis brought this to either the Colonel or Carson's attention. For now she was content to ignore the problem, and deal with the resulting headaches anytime she had to work intensely with any Ancient technology. She'd been a lab animal once, and as much as she knew on some level this was different, she was terrified. The tipping point had come when a week ago with the whole situation with Caldwell and the potential destruction of Atlantis. The city had isolated her and a few others with the ATA gene in various sections of the city, sealing them off behind heavy doors. Cut off and unaware of the real situation, she'd panicked, thinking one of her nightmares came true and the Trust had found her again.

"Do you mind making coffee," Rodney interrupted her thoughts and she realized they were back in one of the labs, half a dozen small objects carefully laid out on a table. She hoped nobody noticed her hand was shaking as she filled the carafe with water and scooped out coffee. When she turned back to the table, she noticed that Rodney had found the thermos in her pack and was sloshing coffee into his mug. She guessed Colonel Sheppard would be appropriating at least one of the turkey sandwiches if Rodney didn't let them head to the mess hall for meals, since he lived on powerbars. She groaned. It was going to be a long day.

Twelve hours and several pots of coffee later, Rodney was willing to let them leave, upset that his latest haul had only resulted in as Colonel Sheppard called it, "a souped up life signs detector." Kyte had to admit it was pretty cool, it not only showed life signs, but also provided a good architectural or elavational survey. So not only could you see who was around you, but relatively where and what was between two people. She was sure there'd be a couple groups fighting over it. New toys always had that result. "Don't forget, target practice tomorrow," reminded Colonel Sheppard. Is it worth the risk to invite Carson," he half-joked, knowing the Scotsman's record. Rodney groaned. "Hey speaking of Carson, are you ok?" he asked seeing Dr. Randall kneading her neck and temples.

"Just tired and a bit of a headache," she responded. So that was the truth. Ok, maybe she was lying about the intensity, but she didn't want to spend the night in the infirmary, even if it meant catching a glimpse of Carson. "I just need some sleep."

"I'll let Elizabeth know what we found today and what we've got planned for tomorrow. Someone else who can manage the chair is always a good thing," muttered Rodney not looking up from his keyboard.

"A couple hundred more drones would be a good thing as well," added Sheppard. "I'll see both of you tomorrow."

"Good night," Dr. Randall called, heading off to her own quarters. By the time she had gotten ready for bed, she was so tired she felt she might actually get more than a few hours. Four hors later, though, she sat bolt upright from a nightmare, crying out. After she calmed down, she glanced at her alarm then tossed and turned for awhile. Finding sleep elusive, she sighed and pulled on running gear. Maybe she could wear herself out again and catch another few hours. The halls of Atlantis were deserted at this hour and she knew she could jog without too much attention. At least that's what she originally thought as she spotted Colonel Sheppard, also out for a run. She tried ducking down another corridor, but he caught sight of her.

"Can't sleep?" he half-scolded.

For a brief moment, she wanted to tell him everything. After all, he'd found out about the Stargate program pretty suddenly, and carrying the ATA gene had kick-started one ongoing chain of events. "The situation with Caldwell and the Trust brought back some old nightmares. They'll pass eventually." She settled for part of the truth.

"You know there are people you can talk to," he lectured,

"That's pretty funny coming from you."

"I know, but your situation is pretty unique. You had your world turned upside down with no explanation…"

"And went through some pretty bad stuff. Sorry, but I don't feel the need to share," Kyte snapped, then softened when she saw the 'kicked puppy dog' look Sheppard was infamous for. "They'll fade. Until then I can survive on less sleep and more coffee. I appreciate your concern, but I'll be fine. Really." She didn't want to think too much about how she would deal with the morning's situation.

TBC


	2. Chapter 2

Origin of a Legend, chapter 2

_For Delka, since she's been so patient_

If Sheppard had decided to follow Kyte after their discussion, he would have noticed that the hall lights, which normally flicked on in the presence of any ATA gene carrier, haphazardly lit the hallway as she passed by. A few even had the audacity to sputter on and off, as if daring her.

Yes, mom, I haven't forgotten. I'm still thinking about it. Now knock it off," she thought angrily at one light in particular, feeling a small twinge as she forced it 'on,' what should have nearly effortless felt like pushing a dull needle through felt. "Only in a lost city that actually exists, can I actually talk to the walls. And they listen. At home, they'd think I'd be pushing a shopping cart through the Tenderloin," she muttered to herself. She thought she felt a small flinch from the city when she said the word 'home,' meaning 'not-Atlantis.'

She ran for a short distance, ignoring the darkness, before stopping again. "Sorry," she apologized, putting a hand hesitantly on the wall, as if she could somehow convey consolation. "We're probably not quite what you were waiting for all these years." Kyte went back to her run, not wanting to wait for a response. When she reached her room, she looked at her watch and then bed, sighing. Too early to head to the mess hall without drawing some well-meaning looks of concern, too late for any significant sleep, even if she could. She toed off her running shoes and walked to her desk, opening her laptop. Despite Kyte being unable to directly contact anyone on Earth, Stargate Command had managed to obtain more than a few of her personal belongings, including copies of her post-doc research she'd been working on when she'd been taken. Her area of research wasn't a primary interest in Atlantis, but her skill set was in demand by several labs, so she had only had the odd hour or two to devote to it. She'd been almost finished, all that was left was the data analysis and a note from a General O'Neill had promised to find a way to publish it, although she wasn't sure how, if she actually did finally complete everything. After a half-hour, despite what she'd thought earlier, words began to blur and Kyte found her falling asleep.

The dreams always began the same_. It was the middle of the night, as she sped down Guerrero and Chavez; even the bars and restaurants were dark, and she grinned as she hit one green light after another. She hadn't intended to stay so late at school, but she'd had to cover a class for one of the grad students (and the $150 he'd offered had influenced her) and then the data analysis program decided to be stubborn and took forever to run. At least she'd have a late morning and tonight they'd be celebrating Tobin's new position as chief resident. She was sure money was changing hands at that announcement, especially since when he'd started he could barely find a vein for an IV. Musing over what to order from Tartine's, she parked her third-hand Ducati in the rented garage space down the street and headed for the house's back entrance, hoping there was still coffee left in one the pots and she wouldn't wake anyone, but more likely than not, since Tobin was on-call, Stace was in her own lab, and Chris had mentioned something about calling Hong Kong for a business meeting the previous morning. As she approached the gate, the hairs on the back of the neck prickled when she saw the man standing there, flanked by two bodyguard-types. "Dr. Randall," he inquired in a tone that indicated he already knew the answer, and every fiber of her being screamed 'Run."_

Kyte awoke with a start, adrenalin coursing through her veins, and with a start looked at her nearby watch. At least she didn't have to worry about being too early for breakfast. After a quick shower, she still arrived ahead of the morning rush, although some of the marines had begun to filter in.

"So I see you decided to go with the Dr Seuss special as well," beamed a very cheerful Lt. Cadman. Kyte looked down at her plate and grinned as the woman sat down.

"Are you sure you didn't want to go into marketing instead of the marines?" she asked, poking the green tinted eggs on her plate. While regular Daedalus runs supplied most of their staples, a lot of the fresher items originated from Atlantis' various trading partners and sometimes thePegasus galaxy variation was a little strange.

"What are you two laughinga bout, hopefully not me," asked Dr. Beckett as he sat down with the two women and exchanged a knowing smile with Cadman. The two had recently begun dating again and Kyte was happy for the both of them. As much as she liked Carson, he couldn't be what she truly needed, and they'd both been adults about it, and he really seemed happy with Laura. Ironically, Kyte and the lieutenant had found out they had more in common than just their choice in men, and had become friends.

"So, I overheard Colonel Sheppard saying they recently found a cache of drones and there's a little target practice going on this morning," Laura said, as she bit into her toast. "I heard he was trying to get most of the natural gene carriers together. Must be fun," she added with a trace of jealousy – she'd tried, but the gene therapy hadn't taken for her. Cason paled though, obviously he had been included in the group, despite his well-documented aversion to anything Ancient outside the medical field.

Noting the physician's reaction, she added, "Cheer up, Carson. With luck, Sheppard will find someone just as capable, but not quite so terrified as you. Or may be it just won't be so traumatic this time, you know, no pressure." Somehow, however, her words did little to sooth him, judging by the Scot's reaction.

Kyte didn't blame him. She wasn't sure how the chair would react to her, and could almost feel the headache beginning. Leaning cross the table, she whispered conspiratorially, "What do you say we get while the getting is good and go hide out in one of the medical research labs? I'm curious to see what you've been working on lately." A strained look crossed the physician's face for a brief second before he started to nod and pushed back from the table.

"Ah, there you two are. Well, if you're done with breakfast, come along." McKay's voice made both of them stop in their tracks. Kyte could swear she hadn't seen him this cheerful since the Daedalus brought a three-month supply of coffee (which quickly disappeared in a month). Even Cadman's presence didn't seem to upset the physicist. "We haven't had both the power or weapons for a detailed analysis of what actually happens, plus and this might interest you and your voodoo practitioners, Carson, Zelenka and I are going to try to monitor how the chair responds to each individual user," he rushed on.

"So you're not going to give this a shot, pun intended," quipped Kyte as she reluctantly followed him along one of the hallways to the transporters, Carson next to her. She'd debated whistling the theme to _Bridge over the River Kwai_, but decided nothing was going to interfere with McKay's good mood. Carson, however, was muttering threats of large needles as they reached the chair room. A couple marines stood awkwardly in a corner as Radek and Miko were setting up various laptops and cabling. Sheppard lounged against the chair, an amused look on his face as he observed the action. Miko gave Kyte a shy wave, as she double-checked her efforts, before straightening and waiting for instructions, pride evident at being both a gene carrier and able to help McKay, her not-so-secret crush set things up clearly evident on her face.

"Ok," Sheppard started once the scientists indicated they were done, "You've each got the opportunity to fire off a couple drones, to see what it feels like, in case it becomes necessary to defend Atlantis." He paused for a moment to let the seriousness of that statement sink in. The _in case I'm not here_ was unspoken. None of them liked the potential implications, but they all knew what was required, even the civilians. "For targeting, we'll be using some of the scattered debris floating around the planet." A hand of the armrest of the chair pulled up a quick map of the sky overhead. You should indicate the target before launching the drone," he added slipping into the chair, which promptly reclined. "See, easy," he finished, sounding like a kid thrilled with his toys as three drones found their targets in quick succession. "Who's next?"

Beckett actually volunteered to be next, muttering something about getting it over with, as he sat. For a second it seemed the chair sensed his nervousness, but after the first drone found its target, he became much more visibly relaxed, effortlessly sending two more drones following the first. "Not so bad," the doctor grinned as the chair straightened, "Not that I'm volunteerin' " he added when he saw McKay looking thoughtfully at him. One of the marines quickly followed and had a few moments of difficulty connecting with Atlantis, but succeeded in his objective. Miko followed, looking very studious, but giving a quick grin as she quickly destroyed her targets.

Feeling the acid churn in her stomach, Kyte followed Miko. The previous times she'd connected with Atlantis in the chair had nearly been effortless, like diving into a pool and discovering you could breath underwater. This time, however, she felt she was fighting for every breath. Grtitting her teeth, she quickly accomplished her objective, fragmenting three good sized pieces of debris. She was certain no one was the wiser until she got up and promptly stumbled.

"Dr. Randall, are you all right?" One of the marines quickly grabbed her and stood her upright.

"Whoa, headrush. I guess I tried to disconnect a little too quickly," she tried to explain. Which might have worked, had Dr. Beckett not been present. He gestured to the marine to continue to hang onto her as he took Kyte's pulse, grimacing slightly. "It's just a bit of a headache," she started, when he interrupted her.

"Your pulse is racing and you feel a bit warm. We're heading back to the infirmary and get you checked out," he ordered, putting a hand to his radio.

"I'm fine," she tried to protest, but realized she wasn't getting anywhere and gave in. "Fine if it will make you feel better, I'll go, but I'm walking. "

Colonel Sheppard arrived in the infirmary about twenty minutes later to see Dr. Randall sitting on one of the beds and scowling at a cotton ball she pressing in the crook of an elbow. "Is the coast clear," she asked, looking around, slightly surprised to see the military leader of Atlantis stopping by to visit her. She'd barely seen him in the past few weeks, which was understandable, given their different roles and responsibilities.

"I think its time for another 'Do as I say, not as I do' lectures," joked the colonel, sitting on a bed opposite hers. "Everyone else finished up fine. According to the data collected, everyone performed better than expected. It's almost as if everyone's becoming more familiar with Atlantis and her workings, even you, Carson," he explained, catching sight of the approaching physicist. Kyte's expression darkened slightly when she saw he carried a tray with him.

"Colonel, what brings you here, voluntarily, I might add," asked the Scotsman, setting down the covered tray.

"Just came to check on Kyte. McKay and his crew should be busy for a couple hours deciphering their data. You really didn't do half bad, Carson. Maybe you're getting more accustomed to Ancient technology," the colonel shrugged.

"It did feel easier, but I'll be repeat what I said before about getting any ideas." Turning to Dr. Randall, "Well, I have the results of your tests back. Nothing too major, but you're borderline anemic and you seem like you've had more than your share of late nights."

"You said something early this morning about not sleeping," started Colonel Sheppard, ignoring the dirty look the scientist shot him.

"Is that true," probed Dr. Beckett. "I noticed you were picking at your breakfast this morning."

Kyte nodded slowly, deciding on a policy of limited truths. "The events of late have stirred up some nightmares again," she stated quietly, in a tone that indicated that was as much as she was willing to admit. Colonel Sheppard gave her a brief suspicious glance.

"You know talking to Kate might help," bustled Carson, setting out the contents of the tray. "In the meantime, a few hours nap and some vitamins might help in the short term, and before you go protesting, I checked your schedule. Everything can wait." He reached for her arm, quickly tying the rubber tourniquet before she could protest. "Just an IV, nothing more, I promise," he coaxed. Behind him, Sheppard nodded his assent, and Kyte shrugged, giving in at being outnumbered. As she drifted off to sleep, she at least had the satisfaction of hearing Sheppard protest Carson's desire to re-run some test results of his.

A few hours later, Dr. Randall awoke in a fairly quiet infirmary. One of the SG teams was back, getting their post-mission physical, but Dr. Beckett noticed she was awake and sent a nurse over to pull out the IV needle. True to his word, that was all, and Kyte headed out to the biology labs. For the rest of the afternoon she was grateful that all she had was routine prep-work, and nothing required great concentration, since she still had a headache from earlier. When everything was done, she washed up and headed to dinner.

"Feeling better," asked Colonel Sheppard as he indicated a spot at his table.

"Yes, thanks for your concern," she replied, sitting down after a moment of nervous consideration. Although there still weren't that many people in Atlantis, Kyte usually ate with a few other scientists as they discussed the day's projects and results or the loose mix of women scientists and marines for some girl-talk.

You are unwell?" asked Teyla, exuding her usual calm and concern.

"Just tired. I am sure the events of the last few weeks have taken their toll on many of us," Kyte answered, acknowledging Teyla's loss of Charin and her own corresponding set of emotions. Ronon grunted, and both women rolled their eyes. _Men_.

"Well, Flyboy, Atlantis might still like you best, but she seems to be warming up to the rest of the gene carriers, particularly those with it naturally." Dr. McKay set his tray down with a decisive thump and swatted Sheppard's hand away from his second slice of cake. "I was just telling Carson that we scientists are trying to quantify gene strength in a way that his tea leaves and chicken bones can't."

"Now Rodney, I didn't say that. I was just saying since the ATA gene is always on and given that it doesn't appear to produce any proteins, it's a little hard to measure strength of the gene without the carrier being in the presence of Ancient technology, plus we're still trying to understand the mental component," Dr. Beckett trailed off, undeterred by the sour look Dr. McKay gave him. Ronon took advantage of the diversion and grabbed the cake, shooting Colonel Sheppard a triumphant look.

"As I was saying, we were able to get a few readings from today's little exercise and we're trying to calculate some concrete values for gene strength," interrupted McKay, scowling at Ronon when he realized his cake had disappeared. Ronon merely grinned, taking a large forkful.

"You're still not accounting for the mental component," the colonel added, trying to distract the physicist from grabbing his cake back.

"Well, I'm assuming you'd agree to a repeat of today, with Carson and his voodoo priests trying to map brain function. Highly subjective, I know, but it will give us a duplicate set of readings, at least. I don't know if it is the ZPM, or experience, but it appeared that it launching the drones took less effort than previous attempts, as if it were easier to interface" McKay pulled up a couple figures on his ever-present computer.

"Some of it could simply be we aren't fighting for our lives, Rodney," interjected Dr. Beckett, his tone indicating he wasn't looking forward to a repeat of the day's events.

"Even your readings appeared improved, Carson. Or maybe Atlantis was flashing you pictures of lonely sheep?" snarked the Canadian. "So did the marines pick the movies tonight agan. A _Die Hard_ marathon?" he asked rapidly changing topics.

"C'mon McKay, they're classic." Sheppard tried to argue, explaining the main character to Ronon who seemed quite interested. Kyte's shoulders relaxed slightly with the change in topic as she picked at tonight's noodle dish. She hoped the next round of target practice would be delayed a few days at least, she still hadn't kicked the headache from earlier and something else was nagging at her, a stray thought she couldn't quite pin down on yop of everything else

"So how's Dr. Robbin's project coming?" asked Dr. Beckett politely, interrupting her contemplation.

The primer pairs are in the thermocycler right now, with another two hours to go," she said, checking her watch. "I'll pull them out later tonight and the gels are ready," he nodded distractedly as he reached for his radio, and made his apologies to the rest of the table. Kyte managed to find couch space a little later and made through the first and most of the second movies, before she decided to leave. Ronon, Sheppard and a few of the marines had a running commentary going about whether or not certain techniques would work. She took care of the things in the lab as she had said, and headed back to her quarters. She was half-asleep, when a few thoughts clicked, and she hit the power button on her laptop. Pulling the needed programs off the general server, she hesitated for a moment before entering Dr. Beckett's password and pulling up select medical files. He could always yell at her later. She wasn't a hacker by any means, but she'd seen him log-on more than a few times and he really needed a better password. She set the programs running with the data she'd pulled, uttering a couple swear words when she had to correct a few lines of code she'd typed.

The program took less time to run than she expected, and she stared hard at the results before entering the command to repeat the analysis multiple times, but the results were unerringly the same, and Kyte sighed, pulling up the general Atlantis calendar. Dr. Weir, Colonel Sheppard and various other department heads held meetings several times a week, with space at the end to address individual issues and Kyte added her name in a slot for tomorrow's meeting. She'd just have to figure out how to explain her little anomaly. Sleep came reluctantly, but blessedly free of dreams.

"So Dr. Randall, what did you wish to bring to our attention this morning," asked Dr. Weir good- naturedly as Colonel Sheppard slid a mug of coffee over as Kyte attempted to interface her laptop to the screen in the room. Dr. Beckett gave her a supportive smile, while Dr. McKay looked bored and eager to get back to his lab.

"I was puzzling over a couple statements made by Dr. McKay yesterday in regards to the data collected and decided to research a few things," she smiled as the first image flashed up on the screen and sat down. "What grabbed my attention was the comments that everything seemed easier and Atlantis showed a greater response." On the screen two sets of bands, each consisting of four colored blocks flickered. There were subtle differences between the two sets in the patterns of colors. "It was suggested that maybe we were all more familiar with Atlantis and this environment, adapting to the constant hum of the city, but what if the city was making us adapt?" She had everyone's attention now. "Sorry Dr. Beckett, but I hacked into your files for the data I needed." Carson scowled slightly, but nodded for her to continue, staring more intently at the screen.

"The first set of data represents the ATA gene sequences for all the natural gene carriers when they first arrived on Atlantis. The second set represents sequences from a person's most recent bloodwork," she paused.

"There's a few differences between the sets, although there seems to be a lot more similarities between the sequences in the second set. This means what?" asked Dr. Weir cautiously, trying to process all the information. Dr. McKay was scowling, seemingly a little out of his element.

"Without rehashing my Genetics 101 lectures, our sequences are being manipulated on a nucleotide level. There are four nucleotides, and three spell out each amino acid, which are the building blocks for protein. Although there are 64 possible combinations, there are only twenty or so known amino acids, meaning multiple spellings of the same protein. It's these little differences that contribute to some of the variation among humans, why some people are particularly sensitive to a certain drug, for example, and may explain differences in people's responses to Ancient technology. Somehow, and I don't know how, Atlantis is manipulating the DNA of the ATA carriers, presumably so we're better able to interface with her, at least genetically," she paused and took a sip of her coffee.

"I'm assuming you checked these mutations, made sure they weren't natural," asked Carson, as Colonel Sheppard and Dr. McKay looked slightly alarmed at the word mutation.

"I'm not sure if mutation is the correct term, it's more of an editing, and yes I ran plenty of bootstrap analyses," she answered. "No way these mutations could be traced to any of the usual, natural suspects like UV rays."

"So you'll all have Colonel Sheppard's abilities," interrupted Rodney with a note of jealousy in his voice. "What about those of us with the gene therapy?"

"Even Colonel Sheppard shows signs of this evolutionary push, and he's still ahead of us, although there may be some 'catch up.' There is some correlation between the number of changes and how long a person's been in Atlantis as well - longer time, more changes. Sadly, though, I don't think its likely that those with the gene therapy will see any changes, the ATA gene has a fairly set location, and whatever is acting on it, is apparently prompted by surrounding sequences. With the gene therapy, the ATA gene is inserted randomly, so unless it just happens to enter the right spot, nothing. I did pull out several sequences in those individuals for whom the therapy took, and no dice."

"Thank you Dr. Randall, This is certainly interesting," interjected Dr. Weir, before McKay would wind up into a rant about unfairness. "You've certainly made an interesting discovery. Carson, could you explore this a little more?" she added, indicating the meeting was over.

"By the way, Kyte, which of those sequences are yours?" asked Colonel Sheppard offhandedly, as she went to disconnect her laptop. The sequences displayed were not labeled.

"These two," she responded, after a couple keystrokes highlighted two bands, which appeared very similar. "The previous modifications to my gene seem to be preventing any of this evolution." His mouth tightened slightly, as if he was waiting for her to say more, but let her leave without further comment.

TBC

A few notes – The Tenderloin has historically been one of San Francisco's grittier neighborhoods, Tartine's is a incredible (real) bakery – you should see the lines for breakfast.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

Colonel Sheppard didn't get much of an opportunity to think about Dr. Randall's comments for most of the morning, focusing on the remainder of his meetings and various military matters. At least not until lunch, when Rodney brought up the whole 'evolution/mutation' matter.

"I always thought Atlantis played favorites, but his just confirms it," he snipped, directing the accusation towards Sheppard as they set their lunch trays down.

"We're talking about a city, Rodney. Maybe it's some sort of automatic program left by the Ancients or something we triggered inadvertently. For all we know, they planned on binging the humans in Pegasus up to their level at some point, I mean I wouldn't put it past them, we've already seen evidence that they've attempted some manipulations, and they weren't great about leaving the documentation around in clearly marked files. Carson I'm sure will be investigating."

"Well, I'm surprised that it was Dr. Randall who noticed, and not Carson. I think that means they're either not giving her enough work to do or Carson's too busy with whatever project he has right now. He's certainly been keeping long hours and been pretty secretive about his voodoo."

"I don't know. I think Carson's been trying to work out a retrovirus, or something to turn the Wraith back into humans. Go easy on Randall, though. I think she's a little stressed right now. I mean, did her reaction this morning seem a little bit off to you?" McKay had already turned to Ronon though, who'd attempted to steal the physicist's cake during the conversation. Colonel Sheppard sighed, then joined in the fray. "_Something didn't add up_," flittered across his mind for a moment and he could almost swear another voice in his head added, "_Talk to her_."

He found his opportunity a few hours later. Dr. Randall was seated at a lab bench under a laminar flow hood, meticulously aliquoting what looked like melted cherry jello into various large petri dishes. She turned and nodded, saving him from trying to determine how to get her attention over the persistent 'whoosh' of the fan blowing sterile air in the enclosure.

"That's not what happens to leftover dessert is it," he asked by way of greeting, indicating the bottles of colored liquid.

"Well, there are some culture media we can make with various food items, but that's not what you're thinking, " she answered with a smile, all the while covering and swirling the plates, before carefully stacking them. "Is there something you need? This isn't one of your usual haunts," she paused, reaching for another package of empty petri dishes and swiftly setting them out with a flourish like a Vegas card dealer.

"I was wondering if you'd be free soon. I was checking the records and you're overdue for continuing jumper training," he answered with a small smirk. Anyone with the gene was expected to learn to fly the jumpers, and those with stronger versions of the gene were expected to go beyond basic training, usually under military guidance. Unfortunately, there wasn't always a correlation between the gene and skill level, as Dr. Beckett had proved and more than a few members of the military didn't enjoy flying with 'grandma.' Kyte, however, had acquired a reputation on the other end of the spectrum, and had trouble finding a co-pilot after deciding a small asteroid belt would make a good slalom course. She'd cleared it expertly, but cut it a little closer and at a much higher speed than the marine with her enjoyed.

"A group from archeology wants to go back to some ruins on PX9-345. I thought we could shuttle them out there and get some practice on the way back. He studied the scientist's face as she considered his offer, wavering between panic and enthusiasm.

"Thanks for the offer, Colonel, but I have a few things to do this afternoon that are a little time critical," she said finally, a note of relief in her voice.

"Don't worry, I cleared your schedule with Dr. Verrelli," he nodded at a scientist in another corner of the room, who waved and appeared slightly envious. Sheppard figured he either hadn't received the gene therapy or it hadn't taken. He did note another momentary flash of panic across Kyte's face before she smiled, though.

"Sure, give me about thirty minutes to finish up here."

"No problem, we'll leave in an hour. See you in the jumper bay. As Colonel Sheppard left the lab, he thought he heard Randall sigh, but it may have been the noise of the hood's fan. Again, he thought he heard a voice in his head, '_Ask her_.'

XXXX

Fifty-five minutes later the colonel walked into jumper bay, taking in the organized chaos as the archeologists loaded items, the marines helping where they could and glancing nervously at Kyte leaning up against a wall. The marines appeared to relax when he entered; secure in the knowledge Kyte wasn't going to be doing all the piloting. He joined Kyte, noting the tac vest next to her and the slightly amused look on her face at the glances from the marines. She could have been a climbing guide in the standard BDU pants and a zipped up lightweight fleece top, waiting for her group to get their things together. He did note she wasn't wearing an expedition jacket – in fact, he couldn't ever recall seeing her in one.

Once it appeared the scientists and marines had finished loading gear, everyone began scrambling for seats and both Sheppard and Randall followed, Kyte putting on and fastening her vest as she walked into the jumper. There were no problems traveling to the planet, and the unloading seemed to go smoothly. Dr. Stone and Lt. Roberts both promised to check in at regular intervals, secure in the knowledge a jumper would return in a few days.

They were airborne and spaceborne again in a matter of minutes, and after checking for Wraith in the vicinity, the colonel turned to Dr. Randall. He couldn't help but notice the tension radiating from her, as if she were steeling herself for something unpleasant.

"So, do you want to tell me what exactly is going on? I think it's a little more than stress and lack of sleep." Sheppard noticed the woman sitting next to him flinched for a moment, but she said nothing for a moment.

"It's nothing. So how about some flight time or do I have to arm-wrestle you for the controls," she responded, attempting a sarcastic response, but there was a slight tremor in her voice.

"Are you going to be ok flying back to Atlantis or will you be shaking and denying you need the infirmary when we get there, like yesterday morning and the chair? Come to think of it, you didn't look great after that afternoon in McKay's lab?" he snapped after another long moment, trying another tact, pulling out images that suddenly popped into his mind. A sharp intake of breath gave him his answer. "Atlantis isn't mad at you, is she?" he joked, slightly confused by the admission and trying to sort out the new puzzle pieces. There was no answer, but he could see the fear she was desperately trying to mask. "I'm not a medical doc like Beckett, or a shrink like Heightmeyer, but I'm good at reading body language, and if you're sick or something like that, we need to get to the root of the problem, fix what's wrong," he finished awkwardly. "You're not pregnant are you," he asked in desperation after another long moment.

That got a reaction and Kyte laughed for a moment, a flash of her typical nature peaking through. "If only it were that simple," she added.

"Well, I guess that's a relief. We've never seen any proof the Ancients had children, but somehow I have this paranoid fear in the back of my mind that Atlantis is matching up those of us with the ATA gene for possible offspring. Am I crazy?" He noticed immediately Dr. Randall was solemn, even strained at his mention of Atlantis. "Ok, there is something going on between you and Atlantis. Do I have to threaten to keep us here until you talk? We're adults, so I hope it doesn't come to that. Atlantis can be scary and stressful, as anyone on this expedition knows, but we all made a choice to come here."

"You may have decided based on how a coin landed, but not all of us had that option," she answered, her voice cold and steely. "I'm not sure I'm part of this expedition officially or even unofficially." She paused for a moment, her voice softer this time, "All of my life, these expectations people have of me, I'm trying to defy them, prove them wrong, run from them. Figure out what I'm supposed to be."

"Maybe you've been running towards something all along. Anyhow, welcome to the human race, we're all trying to figure ourselves out," Colonel Sheppard responded, at a loss for a moment. "There's something more here, than just the normal day-to-day stress of being in Atlantis," he added, encouragingly, still feeling like he was fishing for answers. After another long moment, his patience was finally rewarded.

"Hearing Atlantis, its like being able to pick out a voice in a crowd, noise from another room, at least for me. I know everyone has their own description, but for me it's like background noise, I can ignore it when I want to, but it's always there, sort of an odd comfort. Well, at least until recently. Kyte paused and looked Colonel Sheppard. "I can't connect with Atlantis anymore, or at least not easily." He looked shocked.

"How? Why?"

"It's partly the city and partly me. Ever since that mission P3X-064, with the temple, connecting with the city was a little harder. I mean I knew some things happened to me, but it just took a little more concentration, or so it seemed at first. The last few weeks have been pretty bad. After you got back from the cloister and that time portal, I think Atlantis sped up the attempt at evolution, thinking the gene carriers were ready for the next stage, but I could be wrong. Maybe the 'evolving' just snow-balled what was already happening."

"So yesterday in the chair," the colonel queried gently, starting to put pieces together.

"What happens when I try and force the connection to Atlantis. I can't focus enough to maintain and control what's going on for extended periods of time. For lack of a better description, it just hurts, mentally and physically," Kyte said quietly.

"You haven't talked to Carson about this, seen if there's something he can do, with all his research into the ATA gene?" Colonel Sheppard asked, feeling a little shocked. Being mentally connected to a city was something disconcerting at first, but now he was used to the presence, and didn't know how he'd react without it.

"There's nothing Dr. Beckett can do," she answered, turning back to the starry view before her.

"Kyte," he growled warningly, realizing her answer was just a little too quick and too pat.

"What? It's true, there's nothing Carson can do," she said a little exasperated, which earned her another glare. They stared at each for a few minutes. "Atlantis thinks she can correct the problem, however."

Colonel Sheppard let out a small breath. This was what she had been hiding? He was a man of action, sometimes a little impetuous. See a problem, take care of it. If Dr. Randall had been hiding something this big, however, there must be more to the story, even taking into account her previous history. "So, Atlantis thinks she can fix you," he pressed gently, trying to be supportive.

"Yes, she thinks between the records from when I first arrived in Atlantis and some preliminary experiments from a couple Ancient scientists she can effectively re-write some of my genetic code, correct it to what its supposed to be, or at least pretty close."

"I'm guessing it's not quite that simple?"

"No, the human body is not a machine, that you can simply re-write code for. We're talking about something along the lines of a bone marrow transplant, along with forcing new neural pathways; only multiply that by a factor 10 at least. There are more than a few things that could go wrong," she admitted, giving him a quick glimpse of her underlying fears. "And there are a few other questions that Atlantis can't answer."

Colonel Sheppard really wasn't sure what to say at this point. The Pegasus galaxy could throw quite a few curveballs, and this certainly qualified.

"You familiar with the concept of pre-destination, that everything you will ever do has already been mapped out? Well, there are some that believe we are the total product of our genes: our intelligence, our personality, everything we do in life. I'm not quite sure if I believe that, but if I go through with what Atlantis wants, am I changing who I am? Or think I am " Kyte laughed. "Heightmeyer could get more than a few sessions out of that debate."

"So Atlantis left this choice up to you?" Sheppard pressed. "She couldn't decide what's best, do this while you were sleeping?

"No." Dr. Randall shook her head. "I'll give her credit for that, it has to be my choice, accepting who I was meant to be, or intended to be. I'm not totally comfortable with that idea." Sheppard nodded in understanding. "Plus, it wouldn't exactly be a quick procedure from what Atlantis has shown me. A few other people might need to be involved."

"So what were you planning to do?"

"Call me a procrastinator, but I wanted to see how bad it got. Part of me kept hoping I could leave, go back to my life."

"You know, I'm going to have to let a few people like Elizabeth and Carson know about this. The decision may be out of your hands now," Colonel Sheppard answered as gently as he could. "This affects the security of the city, not to mention your health. I'm guessing Beckett would have figured this out eventually, or Atlantis would have let one of us know." A heavy silence descended once again. "We should head back," he added almost as an afterthought. Kyte just sighed and nodded, nervousness radiating off her.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4 – Thanks to everyone who's been reading. RL has been a bit stressful lately, so some of that might bleed through.

Kyte stood leaning against one of the metal sheets that pivoted to form the walls of the conference room, seemingly more interested in the activities going on in the gateroom than the room's ongoing intense discussion. In actuality, she felt like she had when she'd been called to the high school principal's office. It didn't help any that some the same words then were being used now to describe her actions. Upon their return to Atlantis, Colonel Sheppard had waited a few hours before talking to both Dr. Weir and Dr. Beckett. She didn't know if he'd simply had a few things to do beforehand or he'd wanted to give her a chance to go hide for a little while longer. Not that hiding would have solved any problems, but it had been tempting. She was used to dealing with problems her own way, and this was one of the few that seemed overwhelming, and even worse, could not be dealt with on her terms.

"Dr. Randall, could you give us a few more details, please?" Dr. Weir's request pulled Kyte fully in the room. Dr. Weir and Dr. Beckett both looked strained and for a moment she felt sympathetic. One more thing to deal with that wasn't in the job description, but just another day in Pegasus. Colonel Sheppard and Major Lorne both regarded her with neutral expressions, although Colonel Sheppard gave her an encouraging grin as she poured a cup of coffee. Dr. McKay, on the other hand regarded her with unabashed curiosity as if she were some new Ancient device to take apart and study. She took the seat furthest from him, while noticing that Dr. Heightmeyer seemed to be studying her as well.

"Basically, between Atlantis' attempt to push the evolution of those of us with the ATA gene and what occurred in the temple on P3X-064, I'm losing the ability to connect with Atlantis or interact readily with Ancient technology. The mental component just isn't there, it's like I have to force the connection, as if I'm trying to tune a fuzzy radio station in, or something's just out of reach and I'm straining to get to it. It's exhausting and I get headaches, that worsen the longer I try. Atlantis thinks she can correct the problem, but it means re-engineering my DNA and probably forcing some new neural pathways. I'm not particularly thrilled with this idea," Kyte summarized quietly, in what she hoped was a clinical tone. Somehow she knew this could get very emotional, very quickly, which she didn't want.

Across the table Carson nodded softly, as if a few pieces from the last few days slid into place. "Atlantis hasn't forced you? We know the Ancients could occasionally be careless about what they left around," he paused momentarily thinking of all the situations they'd had to deal with.

"No, ultimately this has to be my choice, I guess. She's tried to encourage my decision, reminding me how difficult things are getting, but the process is not that simple. There's some preparation I'd have to go through before the procedure, if I chose to do it."

"So you haven't mentioned this to anyone? Did you expect to continue to hide this? What if you were needed in a emergency?" Dr. Weir pressed, trying to be diplomatic, but still a little confused about the situation.

"It's my life. I've been dealing with this just fine on my own. A couple tylenol when I have to work with the technology, try to avoid interacting with the city when I don't need to, everything's relatively normal. Besides this isn't something I can exactly mention in casual conversation particularly after everything that's happened lately."

"This isn't something you should have had to deal with on your own, lass," Carson interrupted. "You forget the condition I saw you in, after a session in the chair. You may be risking your health, and there's the safety of others to consider. What if you're handling something you can't control?"

"That's funny coming from you Carson. I seem to recall an incident with a chair and a drone," snapped Kyte.

"Dr. Randall," scolded Dr. Weir. "I think that was a little uncalled for. We simply have your best interests at heart."

"Sorry," she shot an apologetic look at Dr. Beckett. "But, what are my best interests? Who gave you the right to decide? I'm sure Dr. Heightmeyer would agree I'm perfectly capable of making my own decisions right now. My behavior isn't harming anyone, and I know what steps I need to take to avoid the serious complications. The headaches are manageable, especially now that certain people are aware of the situation and hopefully won't try to make spend whole my day off activating artifacts," she glared at Dr. McKay.

"Hey," he protested, realizing her insinuations.

"This isn't quite the question of yelling 'fire' in a crowded theater, Kyte, or proving you are capable of making your own decisions," said Dr. Heightmeyer neutrally.

"There are some larger issues to consider, the safety of Atlantis and possibly the safety of Earth come to mind," added Dr. Weir.

"So you'd simply order someone to put me in restraints to undergo this procedure?" demanded Kyte. Her words hit their mark as the expedition leader flinched. It wasn't a fair comment, but Kyte didn't feel like making things easy. "This is my decision, and for now, I'm choosing not to go through with anything."

"You may not have a choice in the matter, Dr. Randall," put Major Lorne carefully. "Someone else may decide for you."

"There is a third option," Kyte said very quietly. "I could go home, back to Earth. I'm really not sure if I'm really a member of the expedition or even under the SGC's jurisdiction. Am I just some asset you were lucky enough to come across? Did I trade one prison for another?"

"You know it isn't like that, Kyte," Colonel Sheppard corrected as gently as he could. "Officially or not, you are a part of this expedition. You may be here under unusual circumstances and there may be a few restrictions, but,"

"But what's the big deal? You were explaining yesterday with your version of voodoo how the city is busy upgrading all of you natural ATA gene carriers, like it was nothing, just another everyday occurrence," interrupted McKay, scowling.

Kyte looked about ready to slam her hand down on the table, but settled for grabbing her coffee mug with enough ferocity that the contents almost sloshed over the rim She waited a moment for the liquid to settle before taking a deep gulp. "One of these days I'm going to have to come up with a better set of analogies than the computer-related ones we keep using, but since they seem to be what you understand, I'll keep using them. Yes, Atlantis is genetically altering those with the gene occurring naturally. However, those changes are nothing that doesn't happen in nature, its part of the subtle set of differences that make us different, although its happening on a much faster scale compared to anything we humans have ever documented. From what we've seen so far, none of this is going to change anyone physiologically really. The ATA gene carriers aren't acquiring Ancient characteristics, they'll just be better able to interact with the city and technology. I, on the other hand," Dr. Randall trailed off for a moment, gripping her coffee mug tightly, steeling herself what she had to explain next. Some of her protest was childish, but part of it was rooted in some true concerns.

"With me, it's not an upgrade, more like a re-formatting. I'm not sure if whoever messed with my ancestral DNA was able to completely alter it, or of some of the additions themselves mutated. Ten thousand years isn't that long in the evolutionary time scale, but it is long enough for things to change. Atlantis keeps trying to tell me she knows what she's doing, but I don't know if I believe it. As I explained to Colonel Sheppard earlier, there are some who believe we are pre-destined by our very genes. I'm not sure if I agree with this completely, but I don't like the idea of Atlantis altering my genetics, changing who I am. This isn't some little change, my ATA gene has always been a little different, maybe made me a little closer to the Ancients, but Atlantis wants to alter it, alter me. I'm not sure if I'll be the same person afterwards, if I'll even have all my memories with the forcing of new neural pathways. Yes, there are some things I'd like to forget, but still they are my memories, part of what makes me, me," Kyte finished, fighting back a sob.

There was silence for a few moments in the conference room. Kyte focused on her coffee, not wanting to look at anyone. She was certain Dr Heightmeyer would give her one of her, 'let's talk about this,' looks, and she didn't want to see looks of pity on anyone else's face, particularly Carson. Finally Dr. Weir broke the silence.

"While I respect your opinions, Dr. Randall, this is something I need to discuss with Stargate Command. This is bigger than you and I, unfortunately, and they may see things differently. I trust you enough that I'm going to let you go about your daily activities without an escort, but I don't want to see you near the jumperbay or hear about you trying to leave on an unscheduled trip," she said in a tone that brokered no argument. "Anything else?"

"I'd like to run a few tests on Dr. Randall, but that can wait a day or so. I'd also like to take a look at the lab for the procedure, " Carson answered as neutrally as he could.

"As would I, I mean check out the lab," interrupted Dr. McKay, in an excited tone. "It's possible we could reverse engineer something to," he added before being cut by Dr. Weir.

"Given Dr. Randall's headaches as of late, I think a few tests are a reasonable request, Carson," she nodded at both the physician and scientist. "However, the decision regarding the lab is Dr. Randall's for now, until there is an official ruling. I'm assuming, that is satisfactory for everyone?" Dr. Beckett and Dr. Randall both nodded, and although Dr. McKay looked like he wanted to protest, he also nodded finally.

Kyte didn't miss the looks exchanged between Colonel Sheppard and Dr. Weir as she left the room. Major Lorne squeezed her shoulder as he walked by.

"Sorry about the order comment," he said softly, concern on his face.

"I understand. Part of me thinks I'm being purely irrational about all this, but a larger part of me is just terrified. I'm not sure how I feel with the decision possibly out of my hands," she replied.

"Look if there's anything you need, or just want to talk, I'm here."

"Does that include a jumper out of here?"

The major had the decency to look shocked for a moment before they both laughed nervously. "Let me revise that to almost anything."

XXXX

Later that evening Colonel Sheppard found himself wandering the halls and decided to head towards Dr. Randall's quarters. He felt he needed to apologize to Kyte after the events of the day. From what he'd gathered, she hadn't been seen at dinner and he was slightly worried. To that end, he came bearing an apology of sorts - an extra piece of cake from dinner. Although he thought at door chime, there was no response, and he got Atlantis to open the door. Kyte's room was on the small side, but she'd picked it because of the majority of the windows were the Ancient's variation of stained glass, which now caught the last rays of the setting sun, illuminating Kyte slumped against the bed, head braced against crossed arms. A half-empty bottle and a stack of photos completed the tableau. She looked up as the colonel entered.

Colonel Sheppard could tell that Kyte was upset and on the verge of crying. "Hey" he said, stretching out next to her. "What is this," he asked grabbing the bottle and taking a cautious sniff. He looked at the bottle, "You actually smuggled this paint thinner in, rather than ask around for the local rot-gut? Drinking this just has to be painful" he joked.

Kyte grabbed the bottle back. "I guess for some of us tequila is an acquired taste. Besides sometimes you need things to hurt." She took a quick swallow, barely wincing as the liquid burned down her throat. "You want any?" she aksed after a moment. When Colonel Sheppard nodded, she pushed herself up. "Well, since I have company I guess I can be civilized and find a couple glasses."

As she rummaged around in one of the cabinets that had been built into the wall, the colonel stared at the top photo in the pile. Kyte returned with a triumphant look on her face and two mugs. "Don't worry, they're clean. I'm surprised the mess hall hasn't yelled about the number of these that are probably been relocated to personal quarters. I wonder how many are in a certain physicist's lab?" She splashed the almost clear liquid into both mugs, and noticed that the Colonel had returned his attention to the photos.

""On top of everything, today's my wedding anniversary. Eleven years. Some things, no matter what, you just want to remember, that one moment of perfection, where the universe just stops," Kyte said wistfully.

"I'm sorry, I really don't know what to say," answered Sheppard, raising his mug. The tequila burned more than he expected on the way down. They sat in silence for a few moments, taking small sips.

"How long do you think the SGC will debate my case? I mean I'm leaving my future up to people I've barely spoken to, let alone met face to face!" Kyte said suddenly.

"I'm not sure who'll be deciding your case, or how long it will take. If it's simply up to the SGC it could be quick, if it goes to the IOA, it could be awhile. General Landry seems pretty reasonable and thoughtful if it's any consolation, and if O'Neill's involved, all bets are off," Colonel Sheppard paused and drained the contents of his mug. "There's something else I need to tell you." He looked at the woman sitting next to him a little awkwardly. "Elizabeth asked how to handle your reaction to the decision if you didn't like it. I told her I'd be responsible, that if someone had to carry you into the infirmary or lab or whatever, it'd be me, not a couple of newly arrived marines, who don't know who you are."

"I appreciate the thought. Doesn't mean if I don't want to do this, I won't go quietly," Kyte answered, meeting his eyes.

"I'll get Lorne and Ronon if I have to. It's just, well," he trailed off for moment, unable to find the right words. "Like you said, some things have to hurt, but I hope you can trust both us and Atlantis." They sat in silence for a few more minutes, until Sheppard's radio chirped. "Sorry, I have to leave. Get some sleep, ok? Think about what I said," he grabbed the bottle as he stood up. Kyte followed him to the door, acceptance and frustration playing out across her face. On impulse, he pulled her into a quick hug. "It'll all work out." For an instant he thought he could feel Atlantis' approval.

Sheppard forgot about the tequila until he reached the lab. Apparently one of the newer scientists had done something to result in a small explosion, which was almost cleaned up as he arrived. Rodney as usual was muttering about his staff's incompetencies as usual, while Carson and another doctor checked injuries. From the look on the physician's face he seemed in agreement with the Canadian with regard to the cause of the accident. Apparently a few safety protocols had been ignored and the colonel winced at the tongue lashing the scientist would receive not just from McKay but also the medical personnel and probably Dr. Weir.

"I'm going to pretend I didn't see what you've got there, Colonel," scolded Carson, startling Sheppard out of his thoughts.

"It's not mine," began the colonel, hearing McKay snort behind him. "Really," he glared at the two. 'It was Kyte's. I went to see how she was doing after the meeting and since no one saw her at dinner, I was a little worried. She was in her quarters, drinking this," he set the bottle on one of the lab tables. "Apparently today is her wedding anniversary."

Dr. McKay took a cautious whiff of the bottle's contents, "So she decided to drink this? Even the marines' still produces better than this." Sheppard simply shrugged.

"Well, given the day's events I think I can give her an exemption for this, even if she shows up in the infirmary tomorrow hung-over. I'd forgotten what today was for her. She really loved him, and don't roll your eyes Rodney. Some people do fall in love and get married. I'll wait until later tomorrow to talk to her about the tests I want to run."

XXXXXX

If Beckett had expected Kyte to pay for her drinking, it wasn't apparent the next morning. Sheppard found her sparring with Teyla in one of the gyms. As usual the Athosian had her bantos rods, and Dr. Randall, proficient with a sword, fought Highlander-style with a set of wooden rods, one shorter than the other, standing in for the traditional sword and large dagger. He leaned against the wall and watched for a few moments, enjoying the sight before him. Teyla clearly was still the stronger of the two, but Dr. Randall's different style and weapons still presented some challenges. Finally, the fight ended and both women touched foreheads.

"Thank you for the opportunity, Teyla. I have not done this for some time and feel I've gotten a little rusty," commented Kyte as she acknowledged the colonel's presence with a nod.

"It is nice to spar with someone who takes this seriously and is willing to practice. If you like, we could set a regular time," Teyla directed a scolding look at Sheppard.

"That'd be great. Let me know what works best for you," Kyte picked up her pack and stepped into her shoes. "Is there something I can do for you, Colonel?"

"Just checking up on you. No hangover?"

"Nope. Liver still works well. I was going to clean up and then swing by the infirmary before breakfast. I know Carson wanted to run some tests and I didn't know if any of them had to be fasting. Yes, I'm not thrilled, but I just wanted to get them of the way."

"I guess I'll see you later then." Sheppard jogged off to catch up with Teyla who had been heading the opposite direction.

Kyte took a quick shower, pulling on her typical wardrobe of BDUs, t-shirt, and fleece pullover before heading over to the infirmary. Part of her really wanted to procrastinate and put this off to the last minute, but it was easier to simply get it over with, like ripping a bandage off. The nurse went to fetch Carson as soon as Kyte entered.

"Kyte, I didn't expect to see you in this morning. Are you feeling ok after last night?"

"Yes," she answered trying not to roll her eyes. "I haven't had breakfast yet, and figured I should check and see if you needed any fasting bloodwork." She took a seat on the bed indicated.

"Well lass, thank you for being considerate. I'll draw a couple vials and you can come back after you've eaten. I'm afraid what I've got planned will take a few hours."

"I guess I appreciate the notice. There are days though Dr Beckett I think you are trying to make up for all the years I've had of student health insurance," Kyte scowled slightly as she pushed up her sleeve. She did appreciate his dedication, however, when Dr. McKay stomped in, just as Carson was inserting a needle, which never wavered despite the surprise.

"Carson, I've been looking for you, oh and you too, Dr. Randall," began the physicist excitedly.

"Can't you see I'm in the middle of something, Rodney," the physician sighed. "Unless you're volunteering to give blood as well," he added, pulling off the first tube and filling the second. Kyte had to admit she was impressed that the Canadian stayed silent the few minutes it took to fill the second tube. "Ok, lass, hold it there and I'll find a bandage," Carson pushed a piece of cotton against the small puncture. "You were saying Rodney?"

"Well, I was hoping we could convince Dr. Randall to give us the location of the lab, Atlantis mentioned," said the physicist, in a tone that indicated he knew there was a new toy, just out of reach.

"And I believe Elizabeth said we weren't to harass her about it." Both men looked at the woman sitting in front of them, waiting for her objections.

Kyte could see from Dr. McKay's expression, he wouldn't give up, even if the decision was in her favor. He'd just come up with another excuse, and she knew he could be relentless. She made up her mind. _In for a penny, in for a pound_. "Atlantis, please reveal the lab. Dr. Beckett and Dr. McKay are interested," she exhaled softly. She could feel Atlantis making gestures of encouragement, like a mother might for their child who was finally eating their broccoli.

McKay's hand flew to his radio. "There's an increase of power where? I thought we had cleared those labs and found nothing there," he exclaimed racing out of the room.

"Want to bet you don't see him for the rest of the day?" Kyte tried to joke.

TBC


	5. Chapter 5

Hope this doesn't disappoint

Chapter 5

As Kyte guessed, Dr. McKay spent the rest of the day in the newly revealed lab, but surprisingly he was rather quiet, almost embarrassed about the whole matter. If Colonel Sheppard or Dr. Beckett had seen the space they didn't comment on it. Kyte herself had not visited, nor did she ask about it. She wasn't sure if it was nervousness about the whole procedure, denial, or sheer stubbornness; that she'd already conceded more than she had ever wanted to. Dr. Beckett had finished his tests and Dr. Randall had commented he'd probably run every test in the book – and a couple of them twice. She had gotten a small rise out of the CMO for that complaint, and for a moment everything felt normal, or at least what passed for normal in the Pegasus galaxy.

"Aside from the headaches and lack of sleep, you're healthy, lass. I'd like to see you cut back on the caffeine, but since I know all the science departments, including my own run on the stuff, I think we'd sooner see the Wraith becoming vegetarians," the Scotsman commented. Dr. Randall looked apologetic and shrugged. "At least we now know what's going on. I'll trust you not to push your limits while things get sorted out and I've tried to warn Rodney about bothering you too much with activating things, but just in case," he held out a small vial with three pills rattling inside, "these should help. However, if the pain is too much or you empty this within the week, I expect you to see you back here."

"Thanks, Carson. I appreciate this." Dr. Randall knew the physician was pretty strict about handing out painkillers and generally would have preferred to eliminate the source of the problem rather than simply bandaging over it.

"I trust your judgment, but I'd like to see a little faith in return. I want to know about any problems, even if you think they're trivial," he paused for a moment, letting the words sink in. "Other than that, you're free to go. I imagine you have a few experiments and the like to get back to." Kyte nodded as she slid off the bed, wanting nothing more than to pretend the last couple days hadn't happened.

XXXXXX

With each passing day, Kyte relaxed slightly, guessing that the decision had either gotten tabled or had been tied up in discussion by some random committee. She wasn't quite ready to believe that Dr. Weir had simply forgotten to send the matter to the SGC, but she knew that there were a few more important things concerning Stargate Command at the moment. Almost two weeks had passed since the meeting in the conference room and Kyte went about her normal routine as much as possible, but did notice that several people were still subtly keeping an eye on her. She frequently encountered Colonel Sheppard on her morning run, and if she hadn't gone jogging, she usually wound up sparring with either Teyla or Ronon. Neither of them treated her as something as something breakable, but they didn't work her to the point of exhaustion, nor did either of them comment if her form was a little sloppy from pent-up frustration.. And then there was Dr. McKay – somehow he managed to pass by the lab she was working in at least once a day, trying to cover his concern by either berating one of the other scientists in the lab or claiming it was a 'short-cut.'

In the end, to everyone's surprise including her own, Kyte made the decision to go through with Atlantis' procedure, although no one could have predicted the chain of events. Dr. Darjessa was one of the newer scientists in the engineering labs who decided the fastest way to impress the Chief of Science was to study one of the Ancient artifacts, preferably one of those that had not yet been classified and cleared for research. He managed to sweet-talk Miko into activating the vaguely toaster-shaped device and things immediately went pear-shaped. Sparks began shooting out, putting on a display better than any desert lightning storm. These bolts arced towards the walls and wall panels, setting off alarms and creating a forcefield around the device, that no one, including Miko could get near.

Dr. Darjessa allowed himself a moment to panic before grabbing Miko. "Turn it off," he demanded, as firmly as he could manage.

"I can't," she answered in a tone both apologetic and panicky. "Perhaps you should contact Dr. McKay and Colonel Sheppard?"

"What the hell's going on?" demanded a scientist from a neighboring lab, momentarily oblivious to the light show. "We're locked out of Atlantis' systems and our own computers are shutting down. We can't do anything."

"It's affecting out lab as well. Whatever's going on, it seems to be spreading," another scientist added, as she burst in. "What the," she asked noticing the sparks. "Can't you it turn it off?" A small crowd had now gathered. .

"I'm trying," gritted out the supervising scientist. "Miko," he scolded.

"I'm sorry. I cannot turn it off. I would really recommend contacting Colonel Sheppard and Dr. McKay now," stammered Miko.

"I think we can handle this," insisted Dr. Darjessa. "Does anyone else here have the ATA gene?" he asked. One of the other scientists raised his hand.

"I'm sorry, I've only had the gene therapy. It's not responding. Whatever this is for, it's pretty serious. You need someone with the gene naturally." Comments and suggestions soon flew.

"I think Dr. Beckett is on the mainland," someone started.

"Oh that's helpful. Besides you know how the doctor hates technology."

"I think Colonel Sheppard took Ronon and some marines on training exercises. I know they're still in the city, but I think they went into an isolated area. McKay's probably with them, for the entertainment value. Something about explosives…"

"Well, we need to do something. Systems are shutting down and locking us out. If this spreads to the control tower," lectured one of the other scientists, in a 'we are so screwed voice.' Some of the brightest minds in two galaxies looked at each other helplessly, the continuing sparks preventing anyone from getting too close. Additionally, they began arcing further out, slowing driving the room's occupants out and people began shifting uneasily, trying to avoid what would certainly be a painful shock.

"What's going on," snapped Kyte, perhaps a little harsher than she intended, as she walked into the room. "Are you overloading the generators again? My lab's lights just dimmed, and the thermocycler cut out. If I lose those samples...oh crap," she trailed off, spotting the light show.

"Dr. Randall, I activated the device. It was a very serious mistake. No one with the gene can turn it off and it appears to be shutting our computers down and locking us out of Atlantis. It is also spreading." The Japanese scientist paused and bit her lip. "There is no one else here who can help. Please."

Kyte thought for a moment, unsure if McKay had told Miko and his other minions not to ask her to activate things or if it was simply her polite manner, that she was embarrassed about the whole situation. Miko was right, however, a quick glance at the other scientists close to panicking revealed the seriousness of the situation. She swore softly and reached out to the device.

As McKay had apparently demonstrated during the early days of the expedition, there was a mental component to Ancient devices, although that was only part of the equation. Most of the more basic artifacts could be turned 'off' with a simple thought, as long as there was intent or force behind it, but the more complex devices required something more. Kyte couldn't quite find words for the process, the best she could describe it, it was like trying to calm a startled horse, assuming control without being overbearing, soothing without yielding. The stronger the ATA gene, the easier the procedure, usually, although Kyte would argue that it still required a little finesse, something Colonel Sheppard usually had plenty of.

This artifact, whatever it was, was not meant to be shut off easily. Within moments Kyte felt the first twinges of a serious headache as she tried to cajole and direct the energy back into its housing. The ridiculous analogy of trying to zip an overstuffed suitcase closed popped into her mind – she'd no sooner contain one section, than something else would burst free from another corner. Vaguely Dr. Randall was aware of the commentary around her. Systems were still locking people out and she could feel the headache building, threatening to overwhelm her. Her head wasn't the only thing bothering her; she could feel the tension slowly spreading throughout her body, muscles locking up in miniature spasms. Each time she tried to direct the energy back, it flowed out stronger, more insistent and she realized she was losing ground. She wasn't sure if she could have handled the situation even if she wasn't in her current state, but she didn't want to think about what would happen if she lost control. Kyte swore and sent out a silent plea when she realized the energy the artifact was emitting was beginning to spiral out of control. It was only a matter of time before she'd be to exhausted to even try containing everything, but she also didn't dare try to divert her attention to warning the room's occupants of what going on.

A sudden "What the hell is going on here," and "Are you a complete idiot" never sounded more welcome, second only to "Sheppard, we need your gene right now."

"What's going on McKay?" asked the gene-bearer in question.

"One of the supposedly highly educated people Stargate Command sent activated something they shouldn't and now can't think it off. Whatever it is, its wreaking havoc and slowly spreading that chaos." McKay paused mid-rant. "Dr. Randall, what…" he broke off suddenly, noticing the apparent pain the woman was in. "Sheppard, just think it off, ASAP."

Suddenly she could feel someone else trying to control the energy beside her, but she couldn't relax. For what seemed like an eternity she and Colonel Sheppard concentrated on turning the device off. Finally, the light show disappeared and several Ancient consoles flickered back to life. Vaguely she became aware of voices around her again, suddenly everything seemed much louder.

"Sheppard you look like you just went ten rounds with a Wraith! Are you ok?'

"Yeah, McKay I just have a splitting headache. Look, secure that thing, whatever it is, make sure no one else can activate it. Let the marines put some C4 on it even. I don't think we can handle whatever it is. And someone check on Kyte. She's been wrestling with it longer than I have, if I'm hurting after only a few seconds…"

For a brief moment, Kyte felt disoriented, she'd been pushing on something that was suddenly no longer there. Then the full wave of pain crashed over her and she started to crumple, caught only at the last moment by an attentive marine.

"Easy, I've got you," he soothed, before barking out, "Call the infirmary, she's hyperventilating and I can feel her muscles spasming."

"Can't catch my breath. Everything just hurts. Didn't think this was possible," she wheezed. The room seemed to be spinning. She felt her body being shifted into a carrying position.

"Medical's on their way," someone said.

"This will be faster," said the marine. "You too Colonel. Uh, apologies sir." What scared everyone was the lack of protest from either party. "Infirmary, we're coming to you," another marine radioed.

Kyte tried to curl into a ball as she was gently set down, muscles contracting to their shortest points, but the waiting pairs of hands wouldn't let her. Reluctant limbs were stretched out and she felt needles being inserted, and she pulled away from the sudden sharp intrusions, oblivious to the calming words and touches. She felt small patches of cold on her chest from a roaming stethoscope and monitor leads being attached, and wanted to shiver but couldn't. The only comfort was the oxygen mask gently slipped over her face. Voices called out various numbers and tests were ordered, all with 'stat' emphasized.

"What exactly happened," asked a somewhat flustered Dr. Biro. She'd happily been reviewing pathology slides until the three-ring circus stormed in, and as usual there appeared to be a certain colonel involved.

"One of the idiots in my lab activated something that had barely been cataloged, let alone identified, and then apparently couldn't shut it off. Luckily, Colonel Sheppard and his grunts were on their way back from 'training exercises,'" McKay quickly broke in, using air quotes for the last two words, obviously upset.

Well, it's a little scary to think about, but I'm willing to bet this something that couldn't be turned off unless it was a last resort. Dr. Randall had been trying to handle it for a little while, but it took both of us, as in two fairly strong ATA gene carriers, to shut it down. I guess Miko could barely interface with it," Sheppard interrupted, scowling at the nurse who was trying to get him to lie back on the bed. "She took the brunt of it though," he added glancing over to the figure trying to curl up on the neighboring bed. He didn't mention the panic Atlantis conveyed to him as he, Ronon, McKay and the marines had been heading back to the central part of the city. Urgent enough to make him run, although he was still unsure if Atlantis was panicking over the city or Dr. Randall.

"I hate to admit it flyboy, but your answer makes sense in a warped way. The thing could have been some sort of tesla coil or something to wipe out the databases as the Ancients were evacuating, make sure the Wraith couldn't set up any countermeasures," McKay trailed off as the pathologist scowled at the datapad she'd just been handed. "They're going to be alright?" he asked softly realizing the implications of what he just said and what the two just went through.

"Well, both are displaying signs of dehydration, low blood sugar, and electrolytes are all over the charts, particularly for Dr. Randall, and that may be causing other problems. Certainly Colonel Sheppard will be fine in a couple hours after we get some fluids into him," she aimed a glare at the pilot who was not cooperating with the nurse trying to start an IV. Dr. Randall also appears to be in some pain, but I don't want to give her anything too strong until her numbers are closer to normal, for fear of suppressing any vital functions." Seeing Dr. McKay about to protest, she added, "Dr. Beckett would tell you the same thing."

"I guess I better go brief Elizabeth, then, and I have another name to add to the list of those heading back on the next _Daedalus_ run. Kavanaugh may have been an idiot, but even he wasn't this stupid." McKay shot one last glance at Sheppard, who was reluctantly making himself comfortable on an infirmary bed.

"The rest of you, out. I have work to do," added Dr. Biro to the marines still standing around. All of them left, but Ronon simply glared and pulled up a chair near Sheppard's bed. The pathologist sighed and started checking monitors, motioning for two nurses to keep checking Kyte's and the colonel's vitals. A curtain was briefly pulled around Kyte's bed and both men could hear a few pained whimpers, before the curtain was pushed back. Kyte's clothing had been exchanged for scrubs and blankets, but her eyes were screwed shut, pain still apparent. "If you want to talk to her, that's fine. We gave her something for the pain, but only enough to take the edge off," remarked Dr. Biro with surprising gentleness.

"You put up a hell of a fight," the colonel addressed the balled-up figure. "I don't want to think what would have happened if you weren't around, or the marines decided to add another practice round. We could have lost more systems, lost the control of the shield, the gate…" he trailed off when he heard a whisper from the blankets next to him.

I couldn't handle it. Atlantis was right, I need to go through with her procedure." Kyte's voice was so soft Sheppard couldn't tell if she was relieved or heart-broken.

TBC


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6

A/N: I'm guessing this is the chapter (or part of) a few people have been waiting for. Sorry for the long wait – I blame the usual factors – school, work, research, and for some reason, some of this was hard to write.

Kyte shifted under the blankets trying to find a comfortable position with her still aching muscles and all the wires and IV lines; the IV cannula in the crook of her arm giving her particular problems. She understood why it had been inserted, it allowed the medical staff to run an IV and draw blood without additional needles, but it meant she had to keep her arm outstretched. She also belatedly realized that she was extremely uncomfortable with what she had just admitted; finally showing all her cards, if anyone was paying attention.

Colonel Sheppard heard Dr. Randall's rustling under the blankets. He couldn't quite believe what she had just admitted and he knew he had to consider his next words carefully. In the back of his mind he could feel Atlantis fretting, a nervous parent who's child had stayed out too late, right after getting their driver's license. Ronon, however, went for a more direct approach.

"What," asked the Satedan.

Kyte rolled over to face the two men. "I said, I can't handle this anymore. Atlantis and the rest of you were right," she snapped, a little more harshly than she intended. She pushed herself up to a sitting position wincing as she did so. "Go ahead and gloat if you want to, you can even add an 'I told you so.' What you said would happen, did. If you hadn't come back when you did," her voice wavered for a moment, sudden guilt evident in her tone.

"What happened wasn't your fault. I don't think the device was meant to be switched off easily, if at all, unless you were an Ancient. I probably couldn't have thought the thing off by myself, and if I could have, I'd probably be worse shape than the two of us combined. The fault, if anyone's, is that scientist who convinced Miko to activate the artifact in the first place, and knowing Miko, she's feeling extremely guilty. I'm willing to bet she's ready to make McKay coffee for the next five years and surrender any chocolate she has stashed. Hopefully, for her sake, Rodney's busy yelling at the rest of his department and not listening to her." Sheppard gave a quick glance at the ceiling. Now that the danger was past, he felt a sudden protectiveness from Atlantis, a mother lion protecting her cubs, with an underlying hint of anger. He continued, partly for Atlantis' sake and partly for Kyte's, "If the guy's lucky, he's probably just confined to his quarters until the next appearance of the Daedalus. McKay's probably too furious to even assign him the worst job possible – cleaning the desalination tanks." He silently thought a 'We can handle this, everything's under control,' at Atlantis. A small part of him was curious as to what would happen if the city really did get angry with someone, particularly now that they had a ZPM, but a more pragmatic part of him, knew that the full extreme of the city's rage would not be something to wish upon anyone.

Kyte smiled. "I think you know you're in real trouble when McKay simply ignores you. You're simply not worth his time. Sometimes I think he wants you to lash out, strike back with the insults, see if you can rise to the challenge, out-do even him."

Sheppard returned her smile with his usual quirky grin. "What exactly are you getting at? Should I be worried?"

"Just don't cross me. I only look innocent. Really, you think growing up in a small town doesn't foster some creativity? I learned quite a few things besides five different recipes for potato salad. Not to mention college, now there were a couple pranks we pulled," Kyte began while trying to shift into a more comfortable position, her aches momentarily forgotten. "Sometimes it's good to be anonymous, sometimes, well they can't punish you too much if it's big enough or outrageous enough. There was this one incident involving a chocolate cream pie,"

"Why do I have a feeling you should be added to the list of usual suspects the next time something happens to the marines and they blame the scientists?" queried Colonel Sheppard in atone of mock seriousness. "You're not the one who set-up the virus that gave all the marines the blue screen of death, are you?" Kyte gave him her best innocent look.

"No, that's dangerous. Knowing some of the marines, they'd probably think the computers were dead and simply hurl them off the nearest balcony, wasting government money and property. I prefer something a little more clever, like the screen going black and a c-prompt coming up, or the energizer bunny running across the screen. Course, if this does happen, I'm denying we ever had this conversation."

Ronon had been sitting impassively through the exchange, although both Colonel Sheppard and Dr. Randall were sure he was filing a few useful facts away. Despite his usually serious demeanor, Ronon could usually be 'persuaded' to join in some of the lighter moments, like the last water balloon fight, which led to more than a few angry email exchanges about what were 'acceptable' tactics. Now he suddenly shifted, a quick warning of an approaching worried Scotsman.

"I heard there was an incident with one of the un-cataloged artifacts. Doesn't anyone follow safety protocols? I have half a mind to put Rodney on decaf for ignoring his own rules," Dr. Beckett lectured before taking in the sight of his two patients. "Is everyone alright," his tone softened as he was handed charts.

"I think we'll be alright, Doc," Sheppard ventured as Carson started comparing his current readings with those noted on his chart, nodding at the thoroughness of his staff in his absence. "McKay on decaf – who are you trying to punish? It's not McKay's fault, at least not directly. I guess one of his new scientists wanted to impress him and talked someone into activating an Ancient device with Murphy's law defaulting to that device being something that shouldn't have been turned on, and of course being nearly impossible to think 'off.' Dr. Randall got the brunt of it – it took both of us to shut it down. "

"Are you ok?" the physician moved over to the next bed. "Your readings are a little more stable, but I'm sure you're still hurting." Kyte quietly nodded. "I'll have someone check your blood chemistry. If the levels are closer to normal I'll get you something for the pain, and perhaps a muscle relaxant. While I'm sure the effects you two are suffering will wear off, I'd like you to stay overnight, just to be safe. Hopefully Rodney can dig up a little more on this device, but until then I trust you to let me know if something suddenly changes. I mean it, none of this 'I'm fine' and collapsing ten minutes later." A pair of nodding heads led him to relax a little, that and having checked over his patients.

Ronon took up his position as watch as both Colonel Sheppard and Kyte tried to relax. Dr. Randall wordlessly submitted to another blood draw and adjustment of IVs. The relative silence was soon broken as Dr. McKay entered, trailed by Dr. Weir. "Well Colonel, you were right. The artifact was some sort of last resort evacuation protocol, which is why we didn't find it in the main part of Atlantis. It was intended to buy the Ancients a little time to download and then erase parts of their database during an invasion, sort of like a forcefield for their data and electronics. Definitely designed to not be easily switched off."

"So we're destroying it?" ventured Colonel Sheppard.

"Unfortunately, no. Stargate Command and the IOA feel like the device may be useful in a last ditch situation. They've requested it be sent to Earth for study and possible reverse engineering, given a couple current potential threats," interrupted Dr. Weir.

"You did tell them it was nearly impossible to shut down? That it risked the health of to ATA gene carriers," argued Dr. Beckett, joining the conversation.

"The IOA is confident these aren't major issues," answered Dr. Weir, her tone indicating what she thought of the IOA's confidence. McKay's snort seemed to voice everyone else's sentiments.

"They're not going to ask for a gene carrier to come back with the device, are they," asked Beckett cautiously, mind already considering possible excuses and objections.

"No," quickly replied Dr. Weir, "I think they want to look at the device itself." She quickly asked for updates on Dr. Randall and Colonel Sheppard, and the conversations drifted towards everyday minutiae for a little while. Finally, Dr. Beckett noticed that exhaustion was quickly setting in for both his patients and began to make motions to try and shoo the various visitors out.

Kyte hesitated for a moment before grabbing Carson's sleeve as he turned to relay orders. "Wait. I guess I have something to say." Several faces turned to look at her. "I told Colonel Sheppard, and I'm telling you now. Atlantis was right. I'll get the city to send Dr. Beckett and Dr. McKay the files they'll need for everything. I just want a day or two after I get out of here just to wrap my head around things. Maybe I'm being an idiot, but," Carson soft touched her shoulder.

"I'm sure everything can be arranged and certainly no one can criticize you for any of this. We'll discuss all the technical issues later, " the physician commented, looking pointedly at Dr. McKay. "All in all, it boils down to something very personal." Dr. Weir nodded, a few facial lines softening. Kyte knew everyone would be relieved that she had decided on her own, given the slight relaxation she'd seen on the expedition leader's face, another decision had already been made. Dr. Randall, however, was promptly distracted by Carson's bustling and double-checking of vitals, as people said their goodbyes.

"I'll have a couple meal trays brought up. The IVs will have improved your blood-sugar levels, but something in your stomach will help as well. Still sore? I'll run your blood chemistry again and hopefully get you something to take the edge off," the Scotsman commented, partly to his patients, and partly to the nurse standing nearby. He left with a small smile for his two patients.

Once they were relatively alone, Dr. Randall asked, "there was a decision made for me, wasn't there? The colonel looked a little flustered, surprised at her perceptiveness, then nodded. "I'm guessing you or Dr. Weir asked for some time, for me to come around?" Again there was another, almost imperceptible nod.

Carson Beckett re-entered the room, carrying two trays. "Yes, there was a time-table, lass. You've taken genetics, Kyte. You and the Colonel of all people should understand how rare the ATA gene is, much less strong enough to readily interact with Ancient technology. There's no way to sugarcoat it, but the SGC wouldn't simply let you waste your gene. We hoped you'd change your mind, given time, but there was an order f you didn't." The Scotsman paused, clearly uncomfortable with what he was relaying. "Besides, I was concerned about your health. We still don't completely understand the interplay between human physiology and Ancient technology. The headaches you were experiencing could have been an indicator of something much more serious. However, that's all in the past now."

"I guess there's no changing my mind now," Kyte said softly, staring at the tray in front of her, rather than meeting Carson's eyes. "Look, I know I'm still being weird here, but thanks, both of you, and I guess I should thank everyone else involved for your concern and patience."

"We care about you, Kyte. Officially or not, you are a part of Atlantis," added Colonel Sheppard awkwardly, while poking at his mashed potatoes. Kyte turned to her own meal, not quite sure what to say. Neither said anything for a while, except for a couple comments about the meal, particularly the green beans. A few of the marines drifted in to update the colonel on the day's events. Lorne was last and gave Kyte a sympathetic glance as she tried once again to get comfortable.

Once Lorne had left, Carson re-entered, commenting about needing to check vitals once again. Both patients rolled their eyes, but Kyte was relieved when the physician returned a short time later with a syringe. "You're blood chemistry's almost normal lass. I think this should help you relax and get some sleep," he explained as he emptied the contents into her IV. "I'm assuming you're doing alright as well, Colonel?"

Colonel Sheppard nodded, but couldn't resist adding, "I'd sleep better in my own bed, though."

"And you know I want to keep you overnight. Nice try," smiled the Scotsman. "I don't want to hear about either of you sneaking out either." That earned a mock scowl from the Colonel, but Kyte smiled slightly as she felt muscles finally unkink. "Good night," the doctor added as he thought the lights dim, although Colonel Sheppard couldn't resist tweaking the level a little. For Dr. Randall, the exhaustion she'd been battling finally won out in the temporary absence of pain. As she drifted off, she could feel Atlantis trying to comfort her – it wasn't quite comfortable, given her problems connecting with city and felt a little like a cat who's fur was stroked the wrong way, but she appreciated the attempt nonetheless.

SGASGASGA

When Colonel Sheppard awoke the next morning, he noticed two things right away – the bed next to his was empty and a certain Scottish physician was scowling at him.

"Apparently Dr. Randall has learned a few things from you. I said yesterday that the two of you would be released the following day. The lass decided the following day meant 4:30 this morning. At least she left a note." Carson's expression softened for a moment. "Not that I blame her wanting to take off. I got the files for this procedure's preparation and she'll be here for a few days so I can monitor her, plus another few days for the procedure itself. No wonder she wanted a few days to herself, although I'm not sure if she's having second thoughts."

"Carson, how about releasing me, and I'll go see if she's doing okay," hinted Colonel Sheppard, sighing as he submitted to one last check of his vitals, before Carson cleared him to leave. After grabbing a shower and clean clothes, he headed to a mess hall, learning that Rodney had already eaten and had headed back to the newly revealed lab to review the latest files that had been released. Sheppard decided to see the lab for himself, but not before making a quick detour.

Dr. Randall was sitting on one of the balconies typing away on a laptop as he approached. "Came to check up on me?" she asked, pausing in her writing.

"Well, I have a bone to pick with you, you're stealing my material and letting me take the heat from Carson," he began, "and yes, I came to check up on you."

"I don't know if I should be worried or flattered," answered Dr. Randall, closing the laptop.

"Well, I can't claim to know what you're going through, but I think I might have some small clue after my six months with the almost-ascended. As you bio-geeks like to point out, we're the second evolution."

"Form doesn't always follow function, Colonel. We humans appear to be following our own little evolutionary path, which apparently needs a GPS since we've wandered, according to what's happening." She toyed with the lid of the laptop. "Sorry, genetics gets the best of me and as I keep saying, I'm not entirely thrilled with something tampering with my genetic code. Anyhow, as I'm sure you're wondering, I was working on a couple letters in case things don't work out. I'm sure the SGC will censor them, if they're even sent, but I needed to do this."

"I think I understand. Just let me know if there's anything you need. I kind of got you into this mess, " he added apologetically back inside.

Kyte made herself scarce for the remainder of the day and the day following, although Dr. Beckett confirmed that she did have her radio if any emergency arose and that she wasn't skipping meals. He and Dr. McKay checked and double-checked all the data the city had provided, making slight adjustments as needed.

I really wish there was a way to reverse-engineer some of this, adapt the technology and maybe get a better success rate with your gene therapy, or at the least strengthen the ability within those who already have the gene," grumbled McKay as he stared at a console screen.

"We're still having to tweak this a little for the one gene carrier its intended for. I don't think we could alter it enough to work with anyone else," responded Dr. Beckett, caught up in his own calculations.

"It's only been 10,00 years since the Ancient, whoever he was left. How much alteration do we need to do? How much have we really changed?" added Rodney.

"You'd be surprised Dr. McKay. It wasn't until about 7,00 years ago that we could tolerate cow milk," interrupted Dr. Randall, entering the room. She paused for a moment, surveying the space. The lab itself was smaller than most they'd documented around Atlantis and about a third of the room was dedicated to large pod, similar to what Colonel Sheppard and Dr. McKay had described aboard the _Aurora_ although this one was slightly deeper. Kyte walked over to it, touching it hesitantly. "I'm guessing that everything is almost ready?" she asked softly.

"Yes, whoever set the lab up, left fairly good documentation," muttered Dr. McKay not looking up. "You serious about the cow milk thing?"

"Yes, it's true, Rodney," sighed Carson, while trying to give Kyte a reassuring look. "I think we'll be ready tomorrow. I have chemistry making up a couple of the drugs needed, but I'll warn you, they appear similar to chemotherapeutic agents. The next few days may not be pleasant. And no, there's no clue to the identity of who created all this," he added to her unspoken question.

Kyte was silent for a moment. "Atlantis has shown me a few brief flashes of my great-great – I'm not quite sure what to call him, but they're very blurry. All I know is he traveled between Atlantis and Earth a few times and he fell in love with someone. I think he thought he'd be able to bring their children back to Atlantis permanently, but when he realized that might not happen, he put some other plans into motion."

"I wish I had more answers for you lass. The Ancients we've run into haven't exactly been talkative," Carson started, feeling a little out of his element. "Look, get some dinner and get a good night's sleep. I'll expect you in the infirmary tomorrow morning."

TBC

A/N: I hadn't intended to end there, but this chapter got a little out of hand. Oh, and the comment about how humans acquired the genes to digest cow milk about 7000 years ago is true.


	7. Chapter 7

Origin of a Legend – Chapter 7

Origin of a Legend – Chapter 7

"I want a re-match," demanded Colonel Sheppard as he walked into one of the Dr. Randall looked up from the science journal she was reading and grinned. "And here I thought you just missed your favorite bed," she smirked, indicating the familiar infirmary. "I warned you I was very good at cribbage. Are you sure you're up for the humiliation of being skunked again," she asked, pulling a small table over, as the colonel grabbed a nearby chair.

"I take that as a sign you' re feeling better," Sheppard commented, setting down a deck of cards and a small wooden board. "I have to redeem my reputation – can't have stories of my defeat floating around the marine barracks," he added with a quick glance at the IV bag hanging next to the bed. Currently the liquid dripping into Kyte's veins was clear; yesterday's concoction had been a fluorescent blue, which had been a bit unsettling for anyone who passed by.

"I'm feeling ok today, considering Carson warned me I'll probably gasping for air breath when this drug runs its course – something about switching on some different hemoglobin genes. Oh, and I would kill for an espresso right about now, " she continued as nonchalantly as she could, shuffling the deck of cards before dealing six each to herself and the colonel.

"Dr. Randall, lass, you know caffeine is off-limits right now," interjected Dr. Beckett as he came over to check the scientist's vitals and gave Colonel Sheppard a warning look. So far Kyte had remained in the infirmary, but he still wouldn't put it past her to try for a brief escape attempt, especially with the usual instigator nearby. "You feeling alright?"

"I know, I know, with the caffeine thing. Can't blame a girl for trying though," she grumbled. "Seriously, though, I'm feeling fine, but I'll let you know the minute that changes." The first chemical cocktail she'd been given had made her violently ill, and had given more than a few people cause for worry and doubt regarding the sanity of this undertaking, Beckett especially. Both Kyte and Colonel Sheppard could read the unease on the physician's face; Carson had had a lot to deal with as of late and the reminder of what had happened with his retrovirus was still fresh in everyone's minds. There had been a few too many experiments and experiences with gene regulation for the medical and biology staff.

"Just one more infusion after this. I wish I could say the end is in sight, but I'm not sure what the final picture even looks likes," he commented as Kyte scratched at the tape holding the IV in place, wincing a little at how tender the area was. "I can try putting the next IV in a different spot, " he half-scolded, half comforted as he grabbed Kyte's hand to stop her from dislodging the needle. As if in sympathy, the colonel unconsciously rubbed the area of Ellia's feeding mark.

"Thanks for the offer, but, and don't take offense at this, if I wasn't here, in Atlantis' infirmary, people would think I was junkie from the bruises, or just a desperate grad student selling plasma," she paused for a moment, focusing on her cards. "I'm not sure if I'm relieved or worried this part is almost over. I know we both want to say it's all downhill from here, but I just wonder how steep the slope is. Of course I was always taking my bike or wagon to the biggest hill in the neighborhood when I was little. Probably still have the scars to prove it."

"You must have worried your parents on a regular basis," half-scolded the physician, like a mother hen.

"You forget I have four older brothers. A lot of times, it was 'same song, second or third verse.' I think they would have been more shocked if I didn't imitate them."

Carson smiled knowingly. "I'll leave you to your game and check on you in a bit," he finished awkwardly.

Kyte sighed to herself, partly for giving Beckett a hard time, when he on edge just as much, if not more than she was. She didn't know too many physicians who wore their heart on their sleeve like he did, but part of that was also being in Atlantis – it was almost impossible to keep anyone at arm's length. "Ok, so where were we? Oh, yes, I was about to beat you again," she grinned trying to shift to a more positive tone, and displaying her cards to a frowning Colonel Sheppard, who slowly grinned back. "So what's new? I heard a rumor that Colonel Caldwell will remain captain of the _Daedalus_ and that they were able to shut down one cell of the Trust."

Sheppard nodded, as he advanced one of his pegs a few spaces and waited to re-shuffle the cards. "Yes, the got the symbiote out of him and were able to question who was responsible. However, your name didn't come up when they questioned the members they found. Hopefully, those responsible for abducting you are all in custody, but…"

'But it's more likely some of them are still out there. I'm sure there are more than a few splinter groups within the Trust. I'd be surprised if one cell didn't know what another was doing. I think they have a common interest, but that's all. They're not hurting for money, either, so they can pretty much get what they want," finished Kyte quietly, knowing the implications of her statement.

"New flowers?" asked Colonel Sheppard after a moment trying to get the mood back to a lighter one, indicating a large arrangement on a nearby table.

'Yes, they're from Miko. Apparently she's quite talented at ikebana, although she had to get a little creative with the flora of the Pegasus galaxy. I think she still feels guilty for what happened."

"Well, I made sure Rodney wasn't taking advantage of it. She does enough for him as it is." The two played in relative silence for the rest of the game. "Well, you beat me again," exclaimed Colonel Sheppard finally, laying down his last hand.

"On the bright side, you managed a respectable showing this time," conceded Kyte, her smile suddenly turning into a yawn. Noticing the colonel's concern, she quickly added, "I'm fine, just tired. Laying here is hard work," she tried to joke. "I appreciate this," she continued, indicating the cards and board, "but I know they're showing all three 'Back to the Future' movies again, so I don't blame you for taking off."

"You sure? I can stay for another game if you'd like?"

"You salvaged your reputation. I know you're busy, so don't worry about leaving. Besides I know how Dr. McKay claims he hates these movies, yet he still watches them. Who's going to tease him?"

Colonel Sheppard nodded, gathering up the cards and board's pegs. "I'm going to have Carson notify me, when…"

"You don't have to be there, I think this is a non-event," Kyte said very quietly, but trying to inject as much steel into her voice as she could.

Actually, I was thinking of selling tickets," the colonel started to retort, but cut himself off when he saw the scientist shake slightly. "I'm sorry, I meant that as a joke. I may not comprehend completely what you are going through, but with my connection to Atlantis, I think I can try to understand. Anyhow, I got you into this. I need to see it through with you," he finished.

"Apology accepted. I really don't know what to feel right now. Nervous, excited, relieved, terrified, you name it, it is all a bit much right now." She paused for a moment. "Look, if anything happens, I left some papers with Dr. Weir. I need you to promise me you'll honor them. Don't worry, I didn't write them up for this occasion, but after I was told I'd be staying here for awhile, I thought it might be a good idea. Besides, I need to make sure my espresso maker goes to a good home. That and there are a few other things I need to have taken care of."

"Umm, ok," he answered. Both of them fidgeted in silence for a few moments, until Kyte glanced at Sheppard's watch, tilting her hea to the side to read the numbers.

"The movie should be starting soon. Go, make sure you get yourself a good seat," commented Kyte finally. Colonel Sheppard looked relieved and then slightly guilty as he bid his goodbyes, giving Kyte one last glance over his shoulder. Kyte nodded back as he left. She'd been a little surprised when he'd shown up the first day, but had enjoyed his visits as a break from the usual infirmary personnel. What female in their right mind wouldn't want a little attention from Colonel Sheppard? Still, it was a little odd to be singled out like this, but then again nothing about this situation wasn't odd, she noted as she picked up her science journal again, trying to ignore how tired she felt, as well as the tightening of her chest.

Despite the numbers of scientists (including one Rodney McKay) who complained about the scientific inaccuracy of the movies, quite a few of them had shown up, along with numerous military personnel, who either enjoyed the movie, or enjoyed teasing the various scientists. Colonel Sheppard grabbed a bowl of popcorn, nodded to all who acknowledged him, and found a seat near McKay and Ronon, intent on focusing on the movies, despite having seen them enough times to have most of the dialogue memorized. Sometime during the third movie, when Doc and Marty were trying to figure out how reach the speed of 88 miles per hour, his radio chirped and out of the corner of his eye, he noticed McKay reaching for his as well. The message relayed from the infirmary was short and succinct: Meet in the lab. It was time.

As quietly as he could, Sheppard got up from one of the couches and headed for the door, McKay a few steps behind him. There were a few puzzled looks thrown their direction, and after a moment., he noticed Major Lorne and Ronon had also gotten up and were following. Outside in the hallway, he motioned for the physicist to head to the lab, while he talked to Lorne and Ronon. "No emergency; just a call from the infirmary. Apparently Dr. Randall is ready for whatever Atlantis has planned." Ronon remained neutral, but Lorne appeared concerned. "Look, I know you both care about her, but she was saying something earlier about not wanting a crowd of witnesses. You don't have to come."

"She can tell me that herself, commented Lorne, noticing Ronon nodding, as he started towards the lab. Sheppard simply shrugged and followed.

The scene inside the lab was one of quiet urgency. Rodney was scrolling through readouts on one monitor while Radek and Miko checked over another. Dr Weir stood watching in a corner, arms folded over her chest, glancing around nervously. A moment later, Dr. Beckett entered, with two other medics pushing a gurney. Dr. Randall looked pale under the oxygen mask, and it was obvious she was having trouble catching her breath, but she still managed to glare at Colonel Sheppard.

"Sorry, you get to be the center of attention," he apologized, giving her a lopsided grin, which she grudgingly returned. Lorne walked over to the gurney's side and put a hand on Kyte's shoulder.

"Can you give her anything to help her breathing?" he asked Dr. Beckett who was deep in conversation with the scientists in the room. From the look on Dr. Weir's face, she was just about to ask the same question.

"No, I can't give her anything right now that would help. For the time being, Dr. Randall has lost most of the ability to process oxygen from the normal atmosphere. It's all quite fascinating really, one of the drug cocktails she had reactivated some hemoglobin genes that are generally switched off once we're born – they're the ones that allow us to absorb oxygen from the bloodstream as embryos," Carson trailed off, realizing that he had switched into lecture mode again given the blank looks on most of the faces in the room. His staff, however, was giving him indulgent grins, happy to see their boss excited and fascinated with something.

"Embryonic genes, Doc," Colonel Sheppard prompted, studying the capsule in the room. I'm assuming this thing is going to be some kind of, for lack of a better word, womb?"

"Something like that, yes. Outside of injection, inhalation is the fastest way to introduce something into the bloodstream, so continued inhalation would provide for delivery and distribution of large amounts of therapeutic materials, without strict limits on particle size. In addition, from what we've been able to assess, this pod contains numerous monitors to make sure the process goes smoothly from initiation to completion." Several sets of eyes turned to Kyte, who shrugged.

"At least I'm not getting gills, however, if anyone makes any sci-fi or horror movie references," she rasped out the threat, eyes burning fiercely in her seriousness. "I really mean it," she added as the pod suddenly began to fill with a reddish gelatinous fluid. "Or any combination of the two," she added after a moment, considering all possible exemptions. Sheppard gave her a weak grin, and Lorne increased the pressure on her shoulder, but no one laughed, and Dr. Randall cringed slightly – the mood of the room was somber and she began to doubt if the potential jokes had even crossed anyone's mind.

Dr. Zelenka gestured to Rodney, indicating something on one of the monitors, with Miko nodding in agreement. "I think the system is ready," he stated.

"Are you certain," asked Dr. Weir, noticing Kyte's nervousness ratchet up several notches.

'As sure we can be when dealing Ancient technology," snapped Dr. McKay retreating into his usual persona for a moment. "We've been over everything that we can, the rest is up to Atlantis," he added in a less strident tone.

"I guess this where I say 'thank you' and have to make a leap of faith," said Kyte finally, unable to meet anyone's eyes.

"Lass," started Carson, hurrying to her side, as she moved to the edge of the gurney and pulled off the oxygen mask.

"Let's just do this," Kyte interrupted with a sudden firmness, trying to hide her sudden breathlessness and last minute doubts. Ronon was immediately at her side, gently lifting her up and carefully transferring her to the pod, somehow understanding any more hesitation might be her undoing. Dr. Randall felt a moment of panic as the liquid flowed over her head, submerging her, and eliminating her preferred method of breathing and for a moment considered trying to push herself up and out of the pod. She finally gasped and found that her lungs were no longer oxygen-starved. On a subsequent breath, she felt much calmer and sleepily wondered if the fluid contained some sort of sedative. Hopefully the pod's monitors could convey she was okay as she caught one last blurry glimpse of the worried face surrounding her as the pod lid slipped closed.

TBC

One more part and I promise not to make those of you reading wait too long.


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